Entries from August 2008 ↓

Labor Day Roundup

Welcome to this week’s roundup post here at Weight Ladder. Hope everyone has been having a fabulous time during the Labor Day weekend. What have you been up to?
This week from the Fitness Health Network we have a new addition to our group. Give a warm welcome to Mr. Low Body Fat!

Five [...]

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FullBar and Dr. Michael A. Snyder, MD, FACS

I am continuously looking for food that I can snack on in between my main meals. I have tried all types of bars, nuts, fruits, etc. Fruits usually hold me over okay, but I never feel full. Luckily I was contacted a few weeks ago by a PR firm that wante…

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Peaks And Valleys

This is a guest post from my wife, Pam, the fittest person I know.  I wish some of that would rub off on me.  Pam is trying to balance a full time family, a full time job, and a full time ultra-marathon training schedule–a tough task for anyone–and she handles it remarkably well.
Today after work [...]

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The Ultimate Tea Diet By Mark Ukra and Sharon Kolberg

While many diets come and go, new ones spring up to take their place each year. Some go by without much notice, while others are fervently adhered to, at least until the next one comes along. Fad diets have their place, and will undoubtedly last longer than most of us will, but once in a [...]

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Omron HJ-112 Pedometer Review

Is the Omron HJ-112 Pedometer right for you?
If you are in the market for a pedometer, the prices may be quite shocking. However, there are a few very good budget models out there that won’t break the bank and still offer advanced features. The Omron HJ-112 Pedometer is one of the best in this area, [...]

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Great Walking Exercises

One of the easiest ways to keep fit and to get moving is simply walking. Walking may even prevent the common cold. Just about anybody can benefit from walking and if you start slowly you can easily build up your endurance and walk even longer. For those that are not quite ready for hard-core [...]

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Welcome Mr. Low Body Fat!

Today I’m proud to introduce a new addition to the Fitness Health Network, Mr. Low Body Fat!
The story of a 310 lb. college English professor transformed into a lean inspirational health machine is one that’s graced the pages of CNN. If you want to read Muata’s journey, he’s chronicled it for all to read [...]

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Fitness Health Network, Health Ranker, and Sorry

My Apologies

I just want to apologize for the few hundred folks that received a bombardment of posts. I switched from one RSS feed burner to another causing it to send out the last few posts all at once. My bad. As you can see, the count on my feedbur…

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How Debt Reduction And Weight Loss Differ And How They Are Similar

Over at No Credit Needed, I’ve been writing about debt reduction for more than three years.  I’ve been debt free for more than two.  Here at No. Calories Needed, I’ve been writing about (attempted) weight loss, for a long time, but I’ve really struggled to make much progress.  Why?  What is the difference between debt [...]

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The Skinny On “Fat Free” Half And Half

On our vacation last week, Pam and I were responsible for planning, purchasing, and cooking the food.  OK, Pam planned and did a lot of the cooking, but I did make the mega shopping trip and cook my fair share.  My mother in law was responsible for bringing all of the beverages for the trip–including [...]

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Five Common Myths About Strength Training for Women

Women should embrace strength training
When it comes to strength training, many women are under the impression that the term refers to bodybuilding. The mental image is that you will be bulking up instead of getting fit. There are many different myths about strength training for women that are very prevalent. In an effort to help [...]

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Exploring Our Town By Bike

Last week, my wife and I bought brand new Schwinn Midtown bicycles from Costco. Since then, we’ve been riding around town without a care in the world! Actually, I’ve been doing a lot of riding during the day as a way to unwind and relax and it’s been such weather for it too here in [...]

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Turning Fitness into a Game

Clive Thompson at Wired says that a fun way to lose weight is to turn dieting into a game. After watching one of his friends slim down with the Weight Watchers program, Thompson realized it was basically a type of role-playing game (RPG). He writes:

As with an RPG, you roll a virtual character, manage your [...]

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Missed My Weigh-In This Week

I totally forgot that I had to weigh-in Monday morning. I’m used to my weekly weigh-ins being on Wednesdays, so when I woke up this morning I went about my business. I finally remembered halfway through the day and decided that it would be best t…

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Weekly Roundup

I spent this past weekend at Ocean City, MD and didn’t get a chance to put up the roundup before I left. I am happy to report that I have returned, sans a sun burn, and am here with this week’s goodies. As an added bonus (for us, not really for you), my wife and [...]

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Stress, Weight Up…Worry Still Low

We returned home on Friday from a 5-night vacation to Diamond Lake, OR. While the vacation wasn’t as relaxing as I would have liked it to be, we still had a nice time. Yeah, there was rain, cold, wind, mosquitoes and kids trapped in small cabins. But there was also short hikes, [...]

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Nutrition Bars Examined

A Brief Guide on How To Choose a Nutrition Bar
As our schedules get busier (and people get Lazier like me) the popularity of nutrition bars has exploded. It is simply easier to reach for a prepackaged bar instead of having to worry about making breakfast or finding a snack. However, many of these nutrition bars [...]

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Truth About Eggs

I remember watching old movies where you’d see body builders consume a dozen raw eggs for breakfast. I mean these guys would be filling up a cup of the good stuff and chugging it down as a source of quick source protein. Since then, with the advent of whey protein powders and shakes and reports [...]

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Fat Loss Stories of Inspiration: Dr. Kal Chinyere (Lost 130+ Pounds!)

While I’ve really enjoyed being able to be Mr. Low Body Fat the majority of this summer, the reality is that I’m a teacher and the Fall semester starts today.  So, I now have to split my time with my day job, which pays the bills.  Does this mean that I’m leaving you guys and [...]

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Health Insurance: A Brief Overview

While many of us are fortunate enough to have a job that comes with benefits, including company-subsidized health insurance, there are many of us who work in non-traditional jobs, for small businesses, or who are self employed. For everyone, no matter …

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Weekend Update: Doing the Right Thing

I’ve been negligent about the one hundred pushups challenge, both here and in Real Life. I stopped doing my pushups for a week, and it’s been a while since I updated my progress here.
As part of getting “back on the bus”, I’m remedying that situation today. I performed a one-time exhaustion test as a [...]

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Daily Links: Vacation Edition

While we’ve been off enjoying the splendors of mosquitoes, quaint cabins, and a beautiful lake in Southern Oregon, I managed to find a few really interesting articles that you might be interested in:
From the NYT–body size may be an unreliable indicator of health.
From CNN.com–coming soon to a drugstore near you…Exercise in a pill?
From Time.com–Where you [...]

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A Tip is Just a Tip, but a Before and After is My Life

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Katie, an ACE Certified Personal Trainer.

This was only 6 weeks, I wasn’t messing around.

They say that “Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgment.” This statement co…

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150 Healthiest Foods on Earth

Are these 150 foods really the healthiest on Earth?
Have you ever wished that someone would just sit you down and say here – these are the foods you need to be eating? You could look up these nine foods, but you might want more variety. Well, if you need more, the book 150 [...]

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A Much-Needed Attitude Adjustment

Yesterday was a good day. Finally.
The last month has been difficult for me, both mentally and physically. My mother has been in the hospital, I’ve been injured, and I’ve done a poor job of prioritizing fitness. If you think I’ve been whiney here, you should try living in my head!
“You need to go to the [...]

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4 Ways to Avoid Hitting the Exercise Wall

Have you ever hit the wall when you’re exercising? We’re not talking about an actual wall here, we’re talking about that point of no return when your body says “Enough” and refuses to do anything else. Most of us have hit it once or twice, but during the summer months, it is all too easy [...]

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Living Gluten Free

The other day I read that up to 1% of the United States has celiac disease - an autoimmune disorder brought on by the intake of gluten. If you are one of these few people, living gluten-free may be your only option. It can be difficult at first. While there are many benefits [...]

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7.2 Lbs Lost Since Last Official Weigh-In

It’s that time again! Yep, my official weekly weigh-in. Guess what folks? I lost 7.2 lbs since my last official weigh-in. At that time I clocked in at 314 lbs, this morning I was at 306.8 lbs. I finally passed my goal of 5 lbs. lost. I am on trac…

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Seven Gadgets to Help Get In Shape

One of last week’s Deal of the Day at SmartMoney was a look at seven gadgets that might help you get in better shape and they ran the gamut of accessories:

Suunto wrist-top computer
Nike + iPod Sport Kit
Adidas-Polar Project Fusion
Diet and Exercise Assistant for Palm OS
Garmin Forerunner
Wii Fit
PumpOne

It was cool to see the Wii Fit in [...]

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Are You Too Busy for Exercise?

Don’t Let Being Too Busy Derail You
One of the most common complaints that many people have is that they are simply too busy for proper exercise. I know that I always have about 600 blogging tasks on my plate. When you consider how many activities the average person is involved in, as well [...]

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Wardrobe Limbo

I’m in a bit of a tight situation. Actually, tight isn’t the right word. You see, my clothes do not look good on me. They’re just too big. In November, I was wearing mostly size 36 waist pants, but even the one size 38 pair of pants that I reluctantly convinced [...]

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Average Athlete vs. Olympic Athlete

I’ve always loved the Olympics. Despite NBC’s uncanny ability to squeeze all the joy out of the games, I leave my self-imposed “no TV zone” every couple of years to watch the world’s top athletes compete. When I was a boy, I actually wanted to be one of those top athletes. (Though I had no [...]

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The Baby Food Diet

Should You Try The Baby Food Diet To Lose Weight?
One of the most recent fad diets to explode onto the scene is the baby food diet. Many celebrities adhere to this diet and it is quickly making the rounds of the Internet. If you haven’t heard about this new diet craze yet it is actually [...]

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Isagenix Day 4: Lost 3 Lbs. and 3.5 Inches in 3 Days

As promised, here is an update of my 30 day Isagenix Cleanse program. I just started this recently and have some pretty good results. In 3 days I have lost 3 lbs. That’s a lot of weight to lose in 3 days. Aside from that, I have lost a total of 3…

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The Joys of Passive Exercise

In personal finance, the Holy Grail of money seems to be “passive income”. When most people talk about passive income, they mean money that you earn without any active involvement in the process. There are actually very few true sources of passive income (despite the promises of hucksters), and even those that do exist (rental [...]

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Some Early Week Links (Napa Edition)

This past weekend I went to Napa with my wife and a friend. I have to admit that I had a few too many drinks, ate a little too much food, and got less exercise than I should have. I’ve got buckle down hard over the next couple of weeks. In about [...]

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Today Will Be A Great Day At The Gym

My daughter has gymnastics this evening and it’s my day to take her.  While she’s working on her back flips, I’ll be at the gym for an extended workout.
Her class will be in session for three hours, so I’ll have plenty of time to stretch, walk in the treadmill for thirty minutes, work chest and [...]

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Red Bull May Give Heart Problems

Hmmm… the first time I saw Red Bull was on a trip to China when I was a teenager, about a dozen years ago. We saw the bus driver drinking these cans and thought he was getting drunk! It wasn’t until we inspected the can did we learn that these were energy drinks, which hadn’t [...]

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“How to Build Muscle–Olympic Style” by Jason Ferruggia

OK, I know that I wasn’t the only guy out there highly impressed with the awesome physiques of the Olympic gymnasts.  Honestly, I’ve always admired not only their incredible physiques but the fact that they are complete masters of their bodyweight!
Well, contrary what some say, one can definitely build bulging muscles and rock hard abs [...]

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The Family That Runs Together…

SWEATS TOGETHER!
All week, the family had been talking about running the Bush Pasture Park Cross Country Series. We were all excited: Megan (3 1/2) for her 500 meter run, Pam for her 3K, and me for my 5K. The plan was to meet another family with two small children for dinner and [...]

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2.2 Pounds Gained This Week… WTF

Pardon my french, but I am at a bit of a loss… I stuck to my diet more rigorously this last week than I had been since near the beginning of my journey. If anything my portions may have been a little large with the evening meal. I have started rehab on [...]

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Fitness Finds And A New Site Design

I’ve spent some time redesigning the look and feel of the site.  I wanted No. Calories Needed to look more like my main site, No Credit Needed.  I’ll be tweaking the colors a bit.  I’m thinking of making most of the red graphics green, or blue, or orange.  I’m just not sure.
I’m headed to the [...]

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Isagenix 30 Day Cleanse: Video of Day 1

I was contacted by someone I respect with the idea of cleansing my system to help with my some stubborn weight loss. Over the last month I have lost 6 lbs since getting back on track with my eating. After a month of doing some digging into the product,…

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Dieting Causes Brain Damage: How to Lose Weight Without Losing Your Mind By Bradley Trevor Greive

Out of all the diet books we have ever seen, this one simply has the best cover. Nothing gets the point of the title across better than a pie-eyed dog staring at you over a bowl of what looks like very unappetizing cereal. The author of this book is the renowned Bradley Trevor Greive, who [...]

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Getting Fit Slowly

I had another physical therapy appointment yesterday. I wasn’t subjected to the intense pain of deep tissue massage this week, but my therapist did show me several new exercises she’d like me to focus on.
“The real question is, can I run yet or not?” I asked. It’s been two weeks since my last run. [...]

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How to Get Great Arms

Get great arms with these simple exercises
Your arms are a vital part of your body. If you’re not strong enough, it is easy to mistakenly use your back an get injured. Everyone can benefit from basic strength training and arm exercises and luckily, they are pretty easy to do. Here are some of the [...]

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Consistent Weekly Weight Loss: 1 More Pound Lost

Consistent weight loss is where it’s at. For me at least. As long as I keep seeing that scale drop on a weekly basis, I am satisfied. Now, I only lost one pound which is 4 off of my 5 pound goal for the week, but I will take it and run. That make…

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To Stretch, Or Not To Stretch–Who Knows?

Lots of us who exercise regularly stretch for some reason or another. For example, a recent poll showed that Americans stretch to help prevent injury. Both the Norwegians (who stretch before exercise) and Australians (who stretch after exercise) stretch to prevent soreness, enhance well being and increase their performance. Even with [...]

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Michael Phelps Consumes 12,000 A Day

The New York Post has an article today about the diet of swimmer Michael Phelps. Michael Phelps eats an amazing 12,000 calories a day (vs. a typical diet of 2,000 calories) and is well on his way to trying to beat mark Spitz’s record of 7 gold medals in an Olympics. The man has already [...]

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Myths About Coffee: America’s #1 Drink

The New York Times recently took a look at America’s #1 beverage, coffee, and the ingredient that makes people drink, caffeine, the most widely used drug. The article has a lot of facts but here were the ones that stood out for me:

There’s a list of how many milligrams of caffeine is present in average [...]

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